[Boxing] Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou - March 9

[FinneysTrueVision]

It has been confirmed that Anthony Joshua will be fighting Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia on March 9th. Deontay Wilder was supposed to be the original opponent but that plan fell apart after Wilder’s upset loss to  Joseph Parker.

Anthony Joshua is coming off his best win since losing his titles to Andy Ruiz. Francis Ngannou’s previous fight was his pro debut against Tyson Fury in which he scored a knockdown against the lineal heavyweight champion.

I doubt Joshua will take this fight lightly so we will see if Ngannou is a real contender or if his performance against Fury was just a fluke.

https://www.espn.com/boxing/story/_/id/39249014/francis-ngannou-anthony-joshua-square-boxing-match

[Darker45]

I'd say it's a wise choice for Joshua. This would probably make him more money than a match against Wilder. And at this point in his career, it's probably money that matters most.

Wilder was just convincingly defeated. He didn't even win a round in one of the official scorecards. But he remains powerful. He could still defeat Joshua. There's the high risk. Ngannou, on the other hand, is also gifted with power, also fresh from a defeat. But he somehow became a star among boxing fans. He got everybody's respect by sending the Gypsy King down to the canvas. Joshua could be defeated by Ngannou but it's a better risk than be defeated by Wilder.

[Churchillvv]

I haven't been too interested in boxing but my elders at home always watch this fights. I guess I have held alot about this too great fighters and I am looking forward to watching this match let's see who wins though this two Africans would be my favorites if I had been into boxing.

I don't like the fact that this two guys have to meet to prove a point. Each of them is going to aim at proving a point that he is worth his position and Francis is going to be proving a point that he wasn't just lucky on his performance against fury in there previous fight, while Joshua will be fight to maintain his reputation. Well it's just the game let's sit back and watch .

[OgNasty]

I'd say it's a wise choice for Joshua. This would probably make him more money than a match against Wilder. And at this point in his career, it's probably money that matters most.

Wilder was just convincingly defeated. He didn't even win a round in one of the official scorecards. But he remains powerful. He could still defeat Joshua. There's the high risk. Ngannou, on the other hand, is also gifted with power, also fresh from a defeat. But he somehow became a star among boxing fans. He got everybody's respect by sending the Gypsy King down to the canvas. Joshua could be defeated by Ngannou but it's a better risk than be defeated by Wilder.

I don’t think either of them have a chance against Francis after seeing him fight Tyson and lay him on the canvas. We all know he won that fight… This will be another interesting matchup but I think Francis has this. That guy is just a beast. Anthony Joshua better be getting a huge payday because if he loses this will definitely hurt his career.

[robelneo]

This is a big surprise and a big turn of events just a week before the Saudi big events all talks were all Wilder and Joshua and after Wilder lost to Parker this happen, Joshua faced a big obstacle on his journey back to regaining the titles he loses, Ngannou is a dangerous fight, and he can get knock out here if he goes to the ring without a good plan, we have seen how Ngannou almost beat Fury.
He should be very prepared here, I bet on Ngannou here I don't think he can take Ngannou's punch, and besides Joshua does not have a good lateral movement he is an easy target, if Ngannou wins this fight there's a possibility he can get a crack on the title and it's his third fight only.

[bbc.reporter]

Are we living in another reality heehhe. Also, does Francis Ngannou have any plans on fightning in MMA again? It appears that he will retire after 1 or 2 more fights in the boxing ring.

In any case, on the fight itself, what is the height and reach difference between Joshua and Ngannou? If Ngannou has the advantage on both height and reach, I reckon Joshua might have much difficulty in closing the distance to start his offense.

Everyone already knows Ngannou's knockout punch that almost made Fury lie down on a stretcher hehehe.

[Saisher]

This is a make-or-break for both fighters whoever wins this fight will have a chance to fight the Usyk-Fury fight and eventually win all the titles in the heavyweight division, its Joshua's chance for redemption, and its Ngannou's chance for greatness as no MMA fighter has gone to challenge for a title much more a heavyweight title, this is going to be an interesting fight and worth watching, the Saudi's are doing great bringing all these great fights, after there's a lot fo great fights coming from the Saudi promotions.

[Yaunfitda]

Are we living in another reality heehhe. Also, does Francis Ngannou have any plans on fightning in MMA again? It appears that he will retire after 1 or 2 more fights in the boxing ring.

I don't think that Ngannou will come back to UFC, he had beef with Dana White and not sure if other organizations is willing to get him because if there is, he wouldn't box against Fury. And he get his biggest paycheck in boxing, so doesn't make sense for him if he can fight like 2-3 more and then fill his bank with millions.

In any case, on the fight itself, what is the height and reach difference between Joshua and Ngannou? If Ngannou has the advantage on both height and reach, I reckon Joshua might have much difficulty in closing the distance to start his offense.

Everyone already knows Ngannou's knockout punch that almost made Fury lie down on a stretcher hehehe.

Haven't check the stats, but if Ngannou was able to put Fury in the canvass, just imagine if that power touches AJ fragile chin, he might not get back from the canvass and Ngannou winning by knockout. So still, this is going to be a interesting fight and fans are going to love this.

[TravelMug]

And perhaps Wilder is kicking himself, as he is supposedly the fighter that is going to face Joshua and supposedly there is a big money in the table for them. So we might not see that fight as it seems that Wilder lost everything already and could be out of his prime already. On the other hand, Ngannou's performance against Fury can't be denied that he is for real as others totally write him off that he won't last a distance against the best heavyweight of our generation and yet he knock him down and almost pull a upset. So now he will be taking over Wilder's place to face Joshua. I might put some bet here with Francis winning specially that he will be a underdog here. So I voted for Francis Ngannou by KO.

[blckhawk]

With what happened with the Fury vs Ngannou fight, I'm going to bet that this fight is going to be on Anthony Joshua's favor but if Ngannou knocks out Anthony Joshua and makes sure that he's securing a lot more knockdowns than usual then this will probably be a win for Ngannou although I still have a doubt that this is going to be a clean fight in terms of decision so that's why I believe that it's Ngannou's only chance which I do believe he has a higher chance this time because Fury is much tougher than Joshua so Ngannou's power punches is definitely going to shake Joshua even more than Fury. I'll bet on Ngannou just in case the corruption of the boxing federation doesn't touch or affect this match as much as the Fury vs. Ngannou fight.

[bittraffic]

Francis by KO thats for sure. Francis eating the punch of Fury like its nothing will only make AJs punch less effective.

Good for Francis not waiting for Fury rematch. He didnt fumble the bag this time but Fury for not taking the immediate rematch. Dana goes to the ER again while overdriving AJ shill.

[babygun]

Francis by KO thats for sure. Francis eating the punch of Fury like its nothing will only make AJs punch less effective.

Good for Francis not waiting for Fury rematch. He didnt fumble the bag this time but Fury for not taking the immediate rematch. Dana goes to the ER again while overdriving AJ shill.

I think Joshua will win. The performance of Ngannou vs Fury was good but Fury was not at his best and now we will see if Ngannou really stands a chance or not. I think a rematch against Fury would bring more money to the table, but also against Joshua it will generate a lot interest and will be a big payday for both men.

[hilariousetc]

Hyped. I'd heard there was strong rumours about this fight last week and glad the Saudi's have now made it happen. I honestly can't even predict this fight. If Ngannou can floor Fury he can surely do the same to AJ. Ngannou has said that he didn't go in 100% against Fury because he was worried he would gas out quickly and Fury would take advantage of that. Now he knows he can go 10 rounds with the current heavyweight champ I think this makes him much more dangerous. I think I'd put money on either a Francis KO or AJ on points.

Also, does Francis Ngannou have any plans on fightning in MMA again?

Yes. He's signed a multi-fight deal with the PFL and also has equity in the company if I understand correctly. The trouble with the PFL is there's nobody really for him to fight. Name me one PFL heavyweight? They just don't have the roster yet though Francis has said he will fight MMA this year though maybe things will change if he does beat AJ, but I doubt he can just abandon his PFL contract. Either way he can surely do both and I don't see anyone troubling him much in the PFL.

And perhaps Wilder is kicking himself, as he is supposedly the fighter that is going to face Joshua and supposedly there is a big money in the table for them. So we might not see that fight as it seems that Wilder lost everything already and could be out of his prime already. On the other hand, Ngannou's performance against Fury can't be denied that he is for real as others totally write him off that he won't last a distance against the best heavyweight of our generation and yet he knock him down and almost pull a upset. So now he will be taking over Wilder's place to face Joshua. I might put some bet here with Francis winning specially that he will be a underdog here. So I voted for Francis Ngannou by KO.

I heard some rumours that Wilder might be fighting Zhang on the undercard which would be awesome. https://talksport.com/sport/1701854/deontay-wilder-zhilei-zhang-anthony-joshua-francis-ngannou-undercard/

All is not lost for Wilder though, as he may well return to the ring in a big fight sooner than many expected.

According to American journalists Chris Mannix and Dan Rafael, Wilder could fight Zhilei Zhang on the undercard of Joshua vs Ngannou on March 8.

Both men report that Zhang is expected to box on the show, as is Wilder - it's possible that they could fight each other or return in separate bouts.

Hopefully we get another stacked card like The Day of Reckoning one.

[Cryptomultiplier]

Firstly, Saudi Arabia is becoming one of the top spot for many international events and not just football but boxing promotions and matches too.

Secondly, Anthony Joshua has a lot of emotions to pour into this match against former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou,  because having lost on two consecutive occasions, he did well to put his career back on track with a comprehensive win over Otto Wallin last month in Saudi Arabia.
This is going to be a difficult one to predict but I would stand with the Nigerian born fighter rather than root for Ngannou to win after the 10 round bout match in Riyadh.

[Cryptmuster]

I'd say it's a wise choice for Joshua. This would probably make him more money than a match against Wilder. And at this point in his career, it's probably money that matters most.

Wilder was just convincingly defeated. He didn't even win a round in one of the official scorecards. But he remains powerful. He could still defeat Joshua. There's the high risk. Ngannou, on the other hand, is also gifted with power, also fresh from a defeat. But he somehow became a star among boxing fans. He got everybody's respect by sending the Gypsy King down to the canvas. Joshua could be defeated by Ngannou but it's a better risk than be defeated by Wilder.

There is no point in fighting Wilder now, but defeating Ngannou would be a very big victory, because everyone understands that Ngannou defeated Fury, it was just a show in which one knockdown was not enough to win, it was necessary to knock out Fury.

But Joshua must understand that if he loses, his career will be at risk, because if a professional loses to a person far from boxing, then it will be a very resonant defeat. I think that Ngannou will defeat Joshua, and perhaps he shouldn’t have agreed to this fight, this is to some extent an all-in fight for Joshua.

[coin-investor]

Of the two, Joshua is the more technical boxer with Total fights of 30 and 24 knockouts so if the fight goes the distance Joshua will win by a decision, but if Ngannou can land big punches, I don't think Joshua can take the punches of Francis, of the two Julius is the harder punch, so Joshua should not engage against Ngannou he should do what Fury did, be technical do not engage and work on fighting through distance.

Ngannou's lack of experience will show up if Joshua fights intelligently, there are still a lot of flaws in Ngannou fighting style so he should fight him like what he did against Andy Ruiz Jr., fight intelligently.
For Ngannou to beat Joshua he must throw him out of his game, he tends to be out of focus when hit by big punches, so in this fight, it is all about who can properly implement the strategy.

[Viscore]

This is a big match, a very entertaining fight for sure. Now, it's official that Francis Ngannou has become a superstar in boxing as this next fight for him is still against a popular boxer who won a championship before. This, it will measure how strong Francis Ngannou is because the last time, there were rumors that Fury didn't take the fight seriously, so we will see if he can still deliver an impressive performance, or a win here.

Anthony Joshua is coming off his best win since losing his titles to Andy Ruiz.

Nope, he had 3 losses already, first from Andy Ruiz, then two against Oleksandr Usyk.

You can review his record from https://boxrec.com/en/proboxer/659461

[Marykeller]

I'd say it's a wise choice for Joshua. This would probably make him more money than a match against Wilder. And at this point in his career, it's probably money that matters most.

Wilder was just convincingly defeated. He didn't even win a round in one of the official scorecards. But he remains powerful. He could still defeat Joshua. There's the high risk. Ngannou, on the other hand, is also gifted with power, also fresh from a defeat. But he somehow became a star among boxing fans. He got everybody's respect by sending the Gypsy King down to the canvas. Joshua could be defeated by Ngannou but it's a better risk than be defeated by Wilder.

I don’t think either of them have a chance against Francis after seeing him fight Tyson and lay him on the canvas. We all know he won that fight… This will be another interesting matchup but I think Francis has this. That guy is just a beast. Anthony Joshua better be getting a huge payday because if he loses this will definitely hurt his career.

Definitely, it will hurt his career. I don't know why Joshua would pick up a fight with Francis after seeing how he dealt with Fury's face. I really don't like this move because it will be another match loss for Joshua, who wants his boxing career to be resurrected back to the boxing field after losing his world heavyweight title to Usyk twice(2021 and 2022).

Anyway, another man's downfall is a rise to the other. This is a win match for Francis against Joshual in my own opinion and it will help Francis's career in boxing since he left UFC for boxing. 

[Sanitough]

Definitely, it will hurt his career. I don't know why Joshua would pick up a fight with Francis after seeing how he dealt with Fury's face. I really don't like this move because it will be another match loss for Joshua, who wants his boxing career to be resurrected back to the boxing field after losing his world heavyweight title to Usyk twice(2021 and 2022).

Joshua has a decent chance of winning this fight compared to fighting Fury or Usyk again which are legit champions. And those two are in a unification fight, so Joshua must have to be busy looking for a fight and this came on time. Most of you might be thinking that Ngannou will beat Joshua because the latter has a weak chip, but let's just watch and see as the gambling experts does not say the same.

And we can confim that on the betting odds.

Francis Ngannou vs Anthony Joshua Opening Odds
Francis Ngannou +125
Anthony Joshua -155

https://www.bjpenn.com/mma-news/francis-ngannou/opening-odds-released-for-francis-ngannou-vs-anthony-joshua/

Anyway, another man's downfall is a rise to the other. This is a win match for Francis against Joshual in my own opinion and it will help Francis's career in boxing since he left UFC for boxing. 

That's for sure, but he has to win first. I hope he isn't hype because of what he did to Fury. This one is different though because Joshua sure gonna prepare hard for this.

[notblox1]

Dana White is getting desperate right now, and he looks more stupid with every new fight of Ngannou.
Francis was so scared that he is now fighting with the biggest fighters in the world and he is doing it in boxing
Against Tyson Fury I thought Francis didnt have a chance, but after I watched the last fight I think he can do even more against Anthony Joshua.
I cant wait to see this fight, but even more I want him to see back in MMA.